4 ms·

I think you're right, but I'm not so sure it's actually impacting sales to a large degree. For most people a 50k car is a huge investment that won't hinge on wh

I think you're right, but I'm not so sure it's actually impacting sales to a large degree. For most people a 50k car is a huge investment that won't hinge on whether or not you agree with the CEO's politics.

fatbird 2y ago
There's wanting a Tesla and ignoring Musk, but there's also "should we consider a Tesla?" answered by "No, I don't trust him and anything he's associated with." We didn't look at Tesla when we bought our EV two years ago. There were other reasons than just Musk's personality, but it was a definitely a factor in ignoring the brand.
bdcravens 2y ago
Depends on how good the alternatives are. HMC, BMW, etc have some great options.
jltsiren 2y ago
I think it should be the opposite. If you buy a cheap thing and suddenly start feeling uncomfortable using it in public, you can just buy another cheap thing. With expensive things, you want to play it safe, because replacing it will be expensive if you start having second thoughts.
- ein0p 2y ago
  99% of eligible buyers don’t care one way or another. As big as it may seem to you, the US neoliberal bubble is not really that large. That’s why Tesla sold 1.81M cars last year. It is a formidable number no matter how you look at it.
- al_borland 2y ago
  Step 1 is to stop buying things (or not) because you care how it will make you look to other people who don’t actually care. I don’t have a Tesla, but if someone is going to judge me based on the assumed political views of the CEO of the car brand I happen to drive… they need to get a life. Does the company make a good car? That’s the only thing that actually matters.
  - deleted 2y ago
    [deleted]
  - sangnoir 2y ago
    > Step 1 is to stop buying things (or not) because you care how it will make you look to other people who don’t actually care Car OEMs invest millions in branding on the basis of/to promote the opposite of what you're saying: the brand is an expression or an extension of the buyers identity.
    - al_borland 2y ago
      That’s what marketing is, but as individuals we should seek to understand the goal of marketing so we don’t blindly fall for it. It’s not real. As the old saying goes… we spend money we don’t have, on things we don’t need, to impress people we don’t care about. We can choose to not do that, and the marketing department can go to hell.
      - segfaltnh 2y ago
        Regardless of how true your point is, millions of 20-something year old men exist in the market that haven't yet, or never will, reach your state of capitalism nirvana.
        jack_pp 2y ago
        So your assumption justifies judging Tesla owners? Doesn't seem very enlightened of you either
        segfaltnh 2y ago
        Did you mean to reply to me? I didn't claim it was or wasn't okay, or that I was enlightened. I am merely pointing out that one person's journey to separating themselves from being concerned with vanity and status of their vehicle doesn't remove the large population of people predisposed to behave otherwise.
      - 2y ago
pornel 2y ago
An expensive car is also a status symbol. But when the brand is inseparable from Elon's shitposting, it's not something to brag about any more.
- al_borland 2y ago
  I think the number of Uber drivers with Teslas makes it seem like less of a status symbol. A Model 3 or Y isn’t a flex. They start around $30k, which isn’t exactly luxury pricing. Making cars people can afford is a good thing, but once that happens, it stops being a status symbol.
  - cameldrv 2y ago
    It may not be a flex, but having an electric car is still a statement (less than it used to be, but still) that you're a high tech, forward thinking, environmentally conscious person. The problem is that now it's also a statement that you're a Trump supporter.
    - al_borland 2y ago
      Those 2 assumptions are at odds with each other. The Trump supporters I know don’t want anything to do with electric cars, and Trump was the one fighting for coal to remain viable, which is the exact opposite of environmentally conscious. Personally, I have never seen a Tesla and assumed the driver was a Trump supporter. The much bigger stereotype is that the left buys EVs. I don’t think many people are trading in their Cummings diesel 2500 truck for anything electric. The die hard Trump fans would be on Truth Social, not Twitter. They might like some stuff Elon is doing, but I don’t think they are going to give up their gas engines over him.
makeitdouble 2y ago
It's less how they personally feel about the CEO, and more on the image they'll be projecting with their car choice. Basically social signaling.
blibble 2y ago
tesla vehicles have a unique feature that every time elon tweets the resale value drops another 50 bucks regardless of your politics, it's not a good thing
The_Colonel 2y ago
(Expensive) cars are kind of a symbol of irrational decisions. Plenty of people buy cars they dreamed of even if it will ruin them financially. People buy the car for its look, its brand, freedom they feel. A strong association with an ideology you despise will kinda spoil those positive feelings you have, though.

fatbird 2y ago

There's wanting a Tesla and ignoring Musk, but there's also "should we consider a Tesla?" answered by "No, I don't trust him and anything he's associated with." We didn't look at Tesla when we bought our EV two years ago. There were other reasons than just Musk's personality, but it was a definitely a factor in ignoring the brand.

bdcravens 2y ago

Depends on how good the alternatives are. HMC, BMW, etc have some great options.

jltsiren 2y ago

I think it should be the opposite. If you buy a cheap thing and suddenly start feeling uncomfortable using it in public, you can just buy another cheap thing. With expensive things, you want to play it safe, because replacing it will be expensive if you start having second thoughts.

ein0p 2y ago
99% of eligible buyers don’t care one way or another. As big as it may seem to you, the US neoliberal bubble is not really that large. That’s why Tesla sold 1.81M cars last year. It is a formidable number no matter how you look at it.
al_borland 2y ago
Step 1 is to stop buying things (or not) because you care how it will make you look to other people who don’t actually care. I don’t have a Tesla, but if someone is going to judge me based on the assumed political views of the CEO of the car brand I happen to drive… they need to get a life. Does the company make a good car? That’s the only thing that actually matters.
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
- sangnoir 2y ago
  > Step 1 is to stop buying things (or not) because you care how it will make you look to other people who don’t actually care Car OEMs invest millions in branding on the basis of/to promote the opposite of what you're saying: the brand is an expression or an extension of the buyers identity.
  - al_borland 2y ago
    That’s what marketing is, but as individuals we should seek to understand the goal of marketing so we don’t blindly fall for it. It’s not real. As the old saying goes… we spend money we don’t have, on things we don’t need, to impress people we don’t care about. We can choose to not do that, and the marketing department can go to hell.
    - segfaltnh 2y ago
      Regardless of how true your point is, millions of 20-something year old men exist in the market that haven't yet, or never will, reach your state of capitalism nirvana.
      - jack_pp 2y ago
        So your assumption justifies judging Tesla owners? Doesn't seem very enlightened of you either
        segfaltnh 2y ago
        Did you mean to reply to me? I didn't claim it was or wasn't okay, or that I was enlightened. I am merely pointing out that one person's journey to separating themselves from being concerned with vanity and status of their vehicle doesn't remove the large population of people predisposed to behave otherwise.
    - 2y ago

pornel 2y ago

An expensive car is also a status symbol. But when the brand is inseparable from Elon's shitposting, it's not something to brag about any more.

al_borland 2y ago
I think the number of Uber drivers with Teslas makes it seem like less of a status symbol. A Model 3 or Y isn’t a flex. They start around $30k, which isn’t exactly luxury pricing. Making cars people can afford is a good thing, but once that happens, it stops being a status symbol.
- cameldrv 2y ago
  It may not be a flex, but having an electric car is still a statement (less than it used to be, but still) that you're a high tech, forward thinking, environmentally conscious person. The problem is that now it's also a statement that you're a Trump supporter.
  - al_borland 2y ago
    Those 2 assumptions are at odds with each other. The Trump supporters I know don’t want anything to do with electric cars, and Trump was the one fighting for coal to remain viable, which is the exact opposite of environmentally conscious. Personally, I have never seen a Tesla and assumed the driver was a Trump supporter. The much bigger stereotype is that the left buys EVs. I don’t think many people are trading in their Cummings diesel 2500 truck for anything electric. The die hard Trump fans would be on Truth Social, not Twitter. They might like some stuff Elon is doing, but I don’t think they are going to give up their gas engines over him.

makeitdouble 2y ago

It's less how they personally feel about the CEO, and more on the image they'll be projecting with their car choice. Basically social signaling.

blibble 2y ago

tesla vehicles have a unique feature that every time elon tweets the resale value drops another 50 bucks regardless of your politics, it's not a good thing

The_Colonel 2y ago

(Expensive) cars are kind of a symbol of irrational decisions. Plenty of people buy cars they dreamed of even if it will ruin them financially. People buy the car for its look, its brand, freedom they feel. A strong association with an ideology you despise will kinda spoil those positive feelings you have, though.